Age of Rebirth

Chapter 750: The Government's Response

The two major wars that broke out in the north, the Battle of Shanhaiguan in the Northeast Liaoxi area, ended with the loss of more than 27 troops from the Kwantung Army's Southward Corps and several general-level officers. The Battle of Tianjin ended with the defeat of the last heavy-armed group of the North China Expeditionary Army, a disastrous defeat in Jinmen, a loss of 25 troops, retreat to the Korean Peninsula and the Liaodong Peninsula in Northeast China, and the loss of the occupied North China land.

These are two battles with the color of a strategic decisive battle. The impact on the country and the world can be described as huge. Tang Qiuli led the North China Independent Division. Jubilation from top to bottom, since the signing of the "Tanggu Agreement", North China has become a springboard for the Japanese to attack the hinterland of the Central Plains and the Jiangnan area. The battle in Tianjin brought the Japanese back to the northeast. .

Chairman Jiang, who was far away in Chongqing, saw Tang Qiuli's battle report from Tianjin, and looked at the newspaper on the table. They were full of reports on the recovery of North China by the North China Independent Division. He said: "Everyone, what do you think of this matter?" This sentence was asked without thinking, and the staff and senior generals were at a loss, and looked at each other, not knowing how to answer Chairman Jiang's abrupt question.

The unbearable silence and the oppressive and frozen atmosphere showed the complicated psychology of everyone, especially Chairman Jiang, who had even more complicated emotions. In fact, he did not expect these staff and senior generals to give him a satisfactory answer. , after this battle, Tang Qiuli's position in the hearts of the Chinese people is even more unbreakable, and his prestige far exceeds his own. rising sun. [

After a long silence, Generalissimo Jiang waved his hand and signaled everyone to leave. Looking at the people going out, he sighed and said to himself: "From now on, the north will belong to this person! What can I do!" Zhang Qun, secretary-general of the Nanjing camp at the former enemy command headquarters, keenly captured this sentence, the muscles on his face couldn't help jumping, and his eyes flashed. For Zhang Qun, who had followed Chiang Kai-shek all his life, Chairman Jiang's sigh contained Too many complicated emotions made Zhang Qun feel sore.

He hurriedly pulled the sleeves of Chen Cheng, the chief of staff of the Nanjing camp, who came back to report on his duties together. The two deliberately slowed down. Chairman Jiang looked up and saw that the two had not left. He asked strangely: "Yue Jun Brother, Cixiu, is there anything else you want to do?" Before the two could answer, Yang Yongtaijin, secretary-general of the Military Commission of the Nationalist Government, and Gu Zhutong, then head of the Military Command Department of the Military Commission, also came in from the door and saw Zhang Chen and Chen were taken aback for a moment, and then suddenly realized.

Two civilized and two armed forces, this is Chairman Chiang's core inner circle. All the decisions of the national government, the initial motions, all started here. Seeing them come back in unanimous agreement, Chairman Jiang has understood their intentions. Can't help being moved for a while, the fire in his eyes flashed fiercely, then dimmed, and motioned for a few people to sit down.

It was Yang Yongtai who spoke first: "Chairman, the National Government and the Military Commission have to have an attitude towards the recovery of North China by the North China Independent Division. Please teach me that the people below should have a standard. It is a fait accompli. The central government has no voice. Not very good!" What Yang Yongtai said was true, Tang Qiuli was the vice chairman of the military committee and the wartime commander in command of the whole army, and it was his duty to recover North China.

Tang Qiuli won the battle, that is, the victory of the Nationalist Government. It was a matter of course, but everyone present, including Chairman Jiang, felt mixed feelings in their hearts, and it was unspeakably awkward. This victory, if it was Chen Cheng or Gu Zhu Even if it was fought by another person besides Tang Qiuli, Generalissimo Jiang could allocate special funds for vigorous publicity, but Tang Qiuli won the battle, which was not to the liking of several people To put it bluntly, after this battle, Tang Qiuli's position in the Republic of China is unshakable, and it is very possible to replace the old man.

Chairman Jiang thought for a while, and said to Yang Yongtai: "Shunqing, you are fully responsible for this matter. Say hello to the Propaganda Department and the Central News Agency. Don't set the tone too high or too low, so as not to make foreigners laugh. As for the non-government media, they can’t keep their mouths shut, let them go!” Yang Yongtai nodded knowingly, with the framework given by Generalissimo Jiang, the rest will be easy to handle, and he has also grasped the old man’s mind, sour There is jealousy in it, as well as deep fear, and such a trace of indescribable powerlessness.

After the article that needs to be done on the official surface was finished, the room fell into silence again. Everyone knew that this was not the main problem, but they all felt that it was time to start. Chen Cheng couldn't bear it, stood up and said: "Chairman, the students have a suggestion. In view of the end of the war in North China, the Japanese army is aggressively attacking, and the war between China and Japan is over, can the Nanjing camp of the former enemy headquarters of the Military Commission be revoked, and the military command of the whole country be returned to the Military Commission?"

Chen Cheng's suggestion is a bit too blatant. The Nanjing camp has not officially started to operate, and it will be withdrawn. It is obviously to limit or deprive Tang Qiuli of the military command of the whole country. The intention is too obvious. This word spread , the whole country will inevitably be in an uproar, and there will be accusations. Chairman Jiang, whose light is gradually dimming, will be brought to the forefront and become the focus of accusations.

Moreover, the Northeast is still in the hands of the Japanese, the Korean Peninsula and Taiwan, and the Japanese still have hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Why do you, Chen Cheng, say that the Sino-Japanese war is over?Gu Zhutong obviously supported Chen Cheng's suggestion, and set up some kind of camp of former enemy commanders, depriving the Military Commission of most of its power. His military command department was reduced to an executive department. For Gu Zhutong, who is used to giving orders, Can't swallow this breath.

Yang Yongtai and Mrs. Zhang exchanged glances, and both shook their heads secretly. This is not an old-fashioned way of seeking the country. Hurt, the north is still his world, even by virtue of his status as the vice chairman of the military committee, it is justifiable to set foot in the Jiangnan, Ninghu and Hangzhou areas. It's even more logical, and it can't be stopped.

Both Zhang Yang and Zhang Yang are sophisticated people who are used to the vicissitudes of the world. Of course, they would not immediately refute Chen Cheng's suggestion. Besides, they both had good intentions. It’s unavoidable to act too hastily, and the reason is not tenable, let’s discuss a practical solution.” This is tantamount to denying Chen Cheng’s suggestion, but Chen Cheng didn’t care, and sat down calmly.

Chen Cheng, nicknamed "Chen Xiaogui", has understood the mind of the old man. He is most jealous of civil servants who are fond of martial arts, and military officials who are fond of writing. He thinks this is not doing his job properly. The jackpot, although the suggestion was rejected, it got a lot of favors. Naturally, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

Chairman Jiang discussed with his four most confidantes for a long time, but there was no good solution. He could neither deny the fact that North China had been included in Tang Qiuli's sphere of influence, nor obliterate his record of driving the Communists out of North China. Starting from the big picture, in terms of military affairs, the central army troops of the direct line were gradually assembled in the southwest to prevent Tang Qiuli from pulling the central army troops to the front line as cannon fodder once the Communists launched a large-scale attack.

Politically, the Special Situation Handling Committee of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was established to be responsible for handling all matters concerning the government’s foreign wars. Tang Qiuli, who specialized in military command and was responsible for the reason why he could not distract his energy in the war against Japan, was of course excluded from this committee. In fact, this is Zhang Qun's clever trick to take away Tang Qiuli's power as the vice chairman of the Military Commission, and then gradually marginalize him until he fades out of the highest authority in the central government.

In terms of economy, finance and taxation are allocated by the central government in a unified manner. The provinces are not allowed to withhold taxes privately. After they are uniformly turned over to the central finance department, they will be returned and allocated. Money does not support soldiers. This is the truth that three-year-old children know, stuck Tang Qiu Without the source of income, it is tantamount to indirectly limiting the economic lifeline of the North China Independent Division to continue to grow and expand its strength.

This economic plan is very powerful. Tang Qiuli controls all the provinces in North China, and has set foot in the interior regions. It accounts for a huge proportion of local tax revenue. The right to use local tax revenue is tantamount to handing over the wallet to others However, Generalissimo Jiang and his think tanks ignored an important point.

The development experience of the North China Independent Division, except that when it first entered the customs, it received the equipment of the three divisions provided by Chairman Jiang, and the rest of the troops grew and developed. Tang Qiuli did not use a penny from the central government, including fighting In the three Songhu battles, Tang Qiusheng's Sulu mobile corps relied on long-distance transportation from the Huangyadong base to guarantee the materials, medicines, and supplies needed.

What Tang Qiuli saw now was a congratulatory message from Chongqing sent by the Nationalist Government in the name of Generalissimo Jiang to celebrate the retake of North China by the Communist forces. The content of the congratulatory message was as follows: General, I am delighted to hear that your troops have regained the territory of North China and severely damaged the Japanese army. I am very happy and very relieved. I hope you will continue to work hard, Jiang Zhongzheng, Chairman of the Military Commission of the Nationalist Government."

The tone was polite and cold, without saying too much. Tang Qiuli seemed to smell a strong sour smell in the telegram. The old man felt uncomfortable. Seeing that he had won a great victory in North China and lost the land in his hands, When he regained himself, his strength became stronger, threatening his throne, he was both afraid and defensive, but he had to do superficial things, and it was really difficult for him. [

As for the Central News Agency's report on the recovery of North China's territory, the front page headline had a large headline and a commentary, and the content made him laugh and laugh, shaking his head and sighing.

(To be continued)